What is web hosting?
By Ash, Founder, HosteazePublished 2 min read
The short answer
Web hosting is renting space on a computer that's permanently connected to the internet, called a web server. Your website's files, images and database live there, and the server sends them to anyone who types your address. You pay for the storage, the connection and someone keeping the machine running and secure.
A website is just a folder of files: pages, photos, a bit of code and often a database. Web hosting is what puts that folder on a machine that never sleeps, so a customer in Leeds can load your homepage at 2am without you leaving your laptop on.
What happens when someone visits a hosted website?
- A visitor types your address, say
yourbusiness.co.uk, into their browser. - DNS, the internet's address book, looks up which server your domain points to.
- The browser asks that server for the page.
- The server finds the files (or builds the page from your database, if you run WordPress) and sends them back.
- The browser assembles everything into the page you see.
All of that usually takes under a second. If the server is down, slow or overloaded, step 4 is where it goes wrong, which is why uptime matters so much.
What am I actually paying for?
Mostly three things. Disk space for your files, a fast connection to the internet, and a team keeping the server patched, backed up and running. Good hosting also includes the extras most sites need: an SSL certificate for the padlock, email accounts on your domain, and a control panel to manage it all.
If you plan to run WordPress, check the host supports what WordPress.org recommends. As of October 2026 that's PHP 8.3 or newer, MySQL 8.0 or MariaDB 10.11 or newer, and HTTPS support.
What types of web hosting are there?
| Type | How it works | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Shared hosting | Many sites share one server's resources | Most small business and hobby sites |
| VPS | A slice of a server with guaranteed resources | Busy sites or custom software |
| Dedicated server | A whole physical machine for you | Large, high-traffic sites |
| Cloud hosting | Resources spread across many machines | Sites with sudden traffic spikes |
| Website builder | Hosting bundled into a builder subscription | People who never want to touch files |
Shared hosting gets an unfair reputation. A well-run shared server comfortably handles a typical small business site. Start there, and upgrade only when your site gives you a reason. Our guide to shared hosting vs VPS explains the signs.
Do I need hosting if I already have a domain?
Yes, if you want a website. Buying a domain is like registering a business address; hosting is the building. Once you have both, you point the domain at the website by changing its DNS records.
Frequently asked questions
Is a domain name the same as web hosting?
No. The domain is your address (yourbusiness.co.uk) and the hosting is the building the address points to. You can buy them from different companies and connect them with DNS records.
Can I host a website on my own computer?
Technically yes, but it has to stay switched on and connected all day, your home broadband upload speed limits visitors, and you take on all the security work. For a business site, renting space on a proper server is cheaper and far less hassle.
Do website builders include hosting?
Usually, yes. Hosted builders bundle the hosting into the subscription. The trade-off is that you normally can't take the site's files elsewhere, whereas a WordPress site on ordinary hosting can be moved to any host.
